LOOKING FOR ANSWERS
Members of area LGBT community gather to honor victims
Just a day after the deadly shootings in Orlando, Fla., community members came together to honor the victims and pray for peace.
About 100 people attended a candlelight vigil service at St. Vincent United Church of Christ Monday evening to honor the victims of the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history. Inside the gay nightclub Pulse early Sunday morning, 49 people were killed and more than 50 wounded by gunman Omar Mateen.
The vigil was one of many held Monday across the country to honor the victims of the terrorist attack.
During the service led by the Rev. Susan Hanson, attendees sang songs, took up a collection for the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Community Center in Orlando and prayed messages of peace and love.
“We are hungry for justice for those who have fallen,” Hanson said behind a rainbow flag draped lectern, before promoting amessage of peace and goodwill in the face of hatred and discrimination.
Attendees wrote supportive messages on strips of cloth that will be attached
to string and turned into a prayer flag. The flag will then also be sent down to the LGBT Center in Orlando.
Nathan Schwarz, 16, a rising junior at Spring-Ford Area High School, and his parents, Rae Theodore and Chris Hefner of Royersford, were responsible for the flag. They said they wanted to do something to remember the victims and offer a gift for the community in Florida to know that they were thinking of them.
“(They can) display it as they want, or pass it on, or just know that it exists for them,” Hefner said.
All three said they were still grieving in the wake of the shooting.
“It was horrible, absolutely horrible,” Hefner said. “I was in tears and in shock all day Sunday.”
“I was really shocked (to the shooting),” Schwarz said. “Since supposedly some of them were from Philly, it was really emotional.”
“After everyone saw the news it was just heartbreaking,” Theodore said. “Especially in a gay bar, in a place that we’ve always considered safe. It’s a reminder that there’s still a lot of work to be done as far as discrimination, as far as hatred. It’s good to come out and be with each other and share in our grief.”
Rachel Stevenson, president and founder of LGBT Dances, the Chester County nonprofit for the LGBT com-
munity, said the vigil served as a place for people to come together and heal.
“Not just mourn a loss but celebrate unity and strength in each other,” she said. “It’s also a time to make sure the conversation continues. It’s important inside and outside the LGBT community that we talk about this. We don’t just want to try to overcome this and then move on.”
In the aftermath of the shooting, many have been looking for answers as to why this crime occurred, she said.
“It wasn’t just LGBT, most of the people that passed away were Hispanic,” she said. “There are many communities that are hurt by this and confused. It’s important for everybody to remember that we can’t avoid being who we are. We can’t avoid being out and outspoken about what we believe in.”